Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to systems and methods for extending chat capabilities of traditional computer-to-computer chat systems to mobile devices. As will be generally understood, chat sessions typically allow users and chat agents to type and send/receive messages through a chat system. According to one aspect, such a mobile consumer messaging system (mcms) utilizes existing mobile communication channels to interface with existing traditional chat systems. Specifically, in various embodiments of the mcms, chat agents using existing, traditional chat systems are able to participate in chat sessions with end users through the users' mobile devices without specific modifications to the existing chat system. Further, according to one embodiment, chat agents utilize a single chat platform to participate in chat sessions with end users through the end users' mobile devices as well as with various other users utilizing a traditional chat system on a computer.
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1. In a mobile consumer messaging system (mcms), in which the mcms is in electronic communications with a plurality of mobile device users via one or more mobile carrier networks and is in electronic communications with one or more chat agents utilizing one or more chat platforms, a method for facilitating messages between the plurality of mobile devices users and the one or more chat agents, comprising the steps of:
receiving a particular chat message at the mcms from a specific mobile device user via a respective mobile carrier network, wherein the particular chat message includes message content and message identifying information;
extracting via the mcms the message content and message identifying information from the particular chat message and storing the message content and message identifying information in an mcms database;
generating via the mcms a new message in a format acceptable to a respective chat platform, wherein the new message includes the message content and is based on the message identifying information; and
transmitting the new message from the mcms to a respective chat agent associated with the respective chat platform.
14. In a mobile consumer messaging system (mcms), in which the mcms is in electronic communications with a plurality of mobile device users via one or more mobile carrier networks and is in electronic communications with one or more chat agents utilizing one or more chat platforms, a method for facilitating messages between the plurality of mobile devices users and the one or more chat agents, comprising the steps of:
receiving a particular chat message at the mcms from a specific mobile device user via a respective mobile carrier network, wherein the particular chat message includes message content and message identifying information;
extracting via the mcms the message content and message identifying information from the particular chat message and storing the message content and message identifying information in an mcms database;
comparing the message identifying information to stored message identifying information in the mcms database, wherein the stored message identifying information is associated with one or more ongoing chat sessions between mobile device users and chat agents;
if match exists between the message identifying information and the stored message identifying information, retrieving a specific chat session associated with the stored message identifying information and associating the particular chat message with the specific chat session;
generating via the mcms a new message in a format acceptable to a respective chat platform, wherein the new message includes the message content and is based on the stored message identifying information associated with the specific chat session; and
transmitting the new message from the mcms to a respective chat agent associated with the specific chat session and utilizing a respective chat platform.
2. The method of
3. The method of
receiving a responsive message at the mcms from the respective chat agent utilizing the respective chat platform, wherein the responsive message includes responsive message content and responsive message identifying information, and wherein the responsive message is in the format acceptable to the respective chat platform;
parsing the responsive message via the mcms to extract a particular chat session identifier from the responsive message identifying information;
using the particular chat session identifier, retrieving information associated with the particular chat session;
retrieving a unique identifier of the specific mobile device user to which the responsive message is directed from the particular chat session information;
associating the responsive message with the unique identifier of the specific mobile device user via the mcms;
generating via the mcms a responsive mobile chat message in a format acceptable to a specific mobile device of the specific mobile device user, wherein the responsive mobile chat message includes the responsive message content and is based on the responsive message identifying information; and
transmitting the responsive mobile chat message from the mcms to the specific mobile device user via the respective mobile carrier network.
4. The method of
5. The method of
identifying the respective mobile carrier network associated with the specific mobile device user;
identifying an optimal carrier-specific route for message delivery based on predetermined optimizing criteria; and
routing the responsive mobile chat message to the specific mobile device user via the optimal carrier-specific route.
6. The method of
7. The method of
8. The method of
extracting one or more keywords from the message content;
comparing the extracted keywords to a predefined list of keywords, wherein each keyword in the predefined list of keywords is associated with one or more unique chat agents; and
if a match exists between the extracted one or more keywords and a specific keyword in the predefined list of keywords, transmitting the particular chat message to the specific chat agent associated with the specific keyword.
9. The method of
11. The method of
12. The method of
13. The method of
15. The method of
receiving a responsive message at the mcms from the respective chat agent utilizing the respective chat platform, wherein the responsive message includes responsive message content and responsive message identifying information, and wherein the responsive message is in the format acceptable to the respective chat platform;
parsing the responsive message via the mcms to extract a particular chat session identifier from the responsive message identifying information;
using the particular chat session identifier, retrieving information associated with the specific chat session;
retrieving a unique identifier of the specific mobile device user to which the responsive message is directed from the specific chat session information;
associating the responsive message with the unique identifier of the specific mobile device user via the mcms;
generating via the mcms a responsive mobile chat message in a format acceptable to a specific mobile device of the specific mobile device user, wherein the responsive mobile chat message includes the responsive message content and is based on the specific chat session information; and
transmitting the responsive mobile chat message from the mcms to the specific mobile device user via the respective mobile carrier network.
16. The method of
17. The method of
identifying the respective mobile carrier network associated with the specific mobile device user;
identifying an optimal carrier-specific route for message delivery based on predetermined optimizing criteria; and
routing the responsive mobile chat message to the specific mobile device user via the optimal carrier-specific route.
18. The method of
19. The method of
20. The method of
extracting one or more keywords from the message content;
comparing the extracted keywords to a predefined list of keywords, wherein each keyword in the predefined list of keywords is associated with one or more unique chat agents; and
if a match exists between the extracted one or more keywords and a specific keyword in the predefined list of keywords, transmitting the particular chat message to the specific chat agent associated with the specific keyword.
21. The method of
23. The method of
24. The method of
25. The method of
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This application claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/487,456, filed May 18, 2011, and entitled “Systems and Methods for Performing Live Chat Functionality via a Mobile Device”, which is incorporated herein by reference as if set forth herein in its entirety.
The present systems and methods relate generally to computer hardware and software systems for extending the chat capabilities of traditional computer-to-computer chat systems to mobile devices, and more particularly to systems and methods for facilitating chat sessions between customers utilizing mobile devices and customer service representatives using traditional chat platforms.
Traditionally, companies such as merchants and online sellers or service providers have used “chat systems” to communicate directly and in real time with a customer or prospective customer (“chat user”). For example, a given chat user may need to speak with a company's customer service representative (“chat agent”) regarding a recent purchase of a defective product. The user may log on to the company's website, retrieve the customer service phone number, and call the customer service center. The wait time associated with calling the customer service center is often undesirably long.
As an alternate option in a conventional system, once logging on to the company's website, the user can communicate directly with a customer service representative through a dedicated chat application via the user's computer. Chat systems typically function by enabling users to type and send messages through a chat system to chat agents (i.e., customer service representatives) on the other end of the communication, and vice versa.
Such conventional systems, however, have significant drawbacks. For example, existing chat systems do not integrate with mobile devices (e.g., cellular phones, smartphones, PDAs, etc.) due to the unique limitations and communications interfaces associated with mobile devices. Specifically, most mobile device-based operating systems have limitations in terms of the types of information that can be displayed on a mobile device. Further, many mobile device users do not have web functionality on their mobile device, and thus must use a short messaging system (“SMS”) or other such “text” service to chat with others. Historically, these SMS messages have not been compatible with traditional chat systems as the SMS messages can not be properly routed from a mobile carrier network to a traditional chat platform, and vice versa. Further, the format of traditional SMS messages has not been compatible with legacy chat platforms. Therefore, mobile device users generally have not been able to chat directly via their mobile device with chat agents.
Therefore, there is a long-felt but unresolved need for a chat system that enables a user without access to a traditional desktop or laptop computing device to participate in a chat session and communicate with a chat agent as though the chat session had been initiated on a website through a traditional chat system. Likewise, there is a need for a chat system that allows users to participate in chat sessions while they are “on the go,” e.g., while shopping at a particular establishment. Further, there is a need for a chat system that can effectively route chat messages from a chat application to a user's mobile device, and vice versa.
Briefly described, and according to one embodiment, aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to systems and methods for extending the chat capabilities of traditional computer-to-computer chat systems to mobile devices, thus allowing mobile device users to participate in chat sessions.
According to one aspect, a Mobile Consumer Messaging System (“MCMS”) allows a mobile device user to initiate and conduct a chat session with a chat agent or other customer service representative. As will be generally understood, chat sessions typically allow users and chat agents to type and send/receive messages through a chat system. According to one aspect, such a mobile consumer messaging system utilizes existing mobile communication channels to interface with existing traditional chat systems. Specifically, in various embodiments of the MCMS, chat agents using existing, traditional chat systems are able to participate in chat sessions with end users through the users' mobile devices without specific modifications to the existing chat system. Further, according to one embodiment, chat agents utilize a single chat platform to participate in chat sessions with end users through the end users' mobile devices as well as with various other users utilizing a traditional chat system on a computer. According to yet another aspect of the present embodiment, an MCMS allows a customer who is shopping in a busy store, traveling via an airport, or otherwise lacking access to a traditional computer terminal to initiate and participate in a chat session via a mobile device with a customer service chat agent utilizing a traditional chat system.
These and other aspects, features, and benefits of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following detailed written description of the preferred embodiments and aspects taken in conjunction with the following drawings, although variations and modifications thereto may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the novel concepts of the disclosure.
The accompanying drawings illustrate one or more embodiments and/or aspects of the disclosure and, together with the written description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosure. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like elements of an embodiment, and wherein:
For the purpose of promoting an understanding of the principles of the present disclosure, reference will now be made to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings and specific language will be used to describe the same. It will, nevertheless, be understood that no limitation of the scope of the disclosure is thereby intended; any alterations and further modifications of the described or illustrated embodiments, and any further applications of the principles of the disclosure as illustrated therein are contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the disclosure relates.
Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to systems and methods for extending the chat capabilities of traditional computer-to-computer chat systems to mobile devices, thus allowing mobile device users to participate in chat sessions.
According to one aspect, a Mobile Consumer Messaging System (“MCMS”) allows a mobile device user to initiate and conduct a chat session with a chat agent or other customer service representative. As will be generally understood, chat sessions typically allow users and chat agents to type and send/receive messages through a chat system. According to one aspect, such a mobile consumer messaging system utilizes existing mobile communication channels to interface with existing traditional chat systems. Specifically, in various embodiments of the MCMS, chat agents using existing, traditional chat systems are able to participate in chat sessions with end users through the users' mobile devices without specific modifications to the existing chat system. Further, according to one embodiment, chat agents utilize a single chat platform to participate in chat sessions with end users through the end users' mobile devices as well as with various other users utilizing a traditional chat system on a computer. According to yet another aspect of the present embodiment, an MCMS allows a customer who is shopping in a busy store and lacks access to a traditional computer terminal to initiate and participate in a chat session via a mobile device with a customer service chat agent.
Referring now to the figures,
As discussed and according to the embodiment shown in
The MCMS 101 includes operative (and preferably wireless) connections to potential customers and various other users via a carrier network 120A or 120B. Although
According to the embodiment shown in
For example, a mobile device user shopping in a department store may have a question regarding a particular item for sale in the store. If the department store offers customers the opportunity to conduct mobile chats with customer service representatives, it may have signs posted throughout the store that provide customers with a specified address or number for connecting to customer service representatives via mobile device. Such specified addresses or numbers allow the carrier network to recognize that the user is requesting a chat session with a customer service representative and the message should be handled accordingly, as will be discussed in greater detail below. Customers are able to send a keyword such as “CHAT” or a general question to the specified address or number which will in turn initiate the a chat session with a customer service representative through an embodiment of the MCMS. Specifically, by sending a chat message with appropriate identifying information to a predetermined number (e.g., phone number, address, etc.), the mobile carrier and MCMS are able to determine that the message should be routed to the MCMS (and, a corresponding MMP 160 of the department store) for further processing.
After receiving and processing the mobile device user's chat message 115, according to one aspect, the mobile device user's mobile carrier typically forwards the chat message to an MCP 140 of an MCMS 101 for processing before sending the message to an MMP 160 (e.g., chat platform). Generally, once the MCP 140 receives the mobile device user's chat message, Message Coordinating Module 144 processes the chat message to extract certain information included in said message. Such information may include, but is not limited to, the particular area of skill or knowledge requested from a chat operator, a request for a chat operator who speaks a particular language, a request for a chat operator in a particular geographic location, etc. (Further details regarding the various processes carried out by an MCP 140 will be described in greater detail in connection with
Typically, once the Messaging Coordinating Module 144 fully processes the mobile device user's chat message, the MCP 140 forwards the transformed chat message to an MMP 160 for further message processing, such as determining a proper customer service representative console to which said message should be forwarded. (Details regarding the various processes carried out by an MMP 160 will be described in greater detail in connection with
According to one aspect, after an MMP 160 further processes a mobile device user's chat message, the MCMS 101 typically routes said message to one or more chat consoles 180 operating on one or more customer service representatives' 170A, 170B, and 170C electronic computing devices (e.g., laptop computers, desktop computers, etc.). According to the embodiment shown in
Still referring to
According to one embodiment, following said MCP 140 processing, an MCMS 101 typically routes said message to said identified mobile carrier for delivery to the intended recipient's mobile device by the mobile carrier. In one embodiment (described in greater detail below), the message is optimally routed to the user 100 through a carrier routing path to optimize delivery time and load balancing based on various factors including network traffic, route availability, etc. In general and according to one embodiment, upon receipt of the responsive introductory message from a customer service representative, a mobile user utilizing a mobile device is able to conduct an ongoing chat session with a customer service representative in the manner described herein.
According to one aspect of the present embodiment, a mobile device user 110A, 110B, and 110C may likewise use a mobile website optimized for a mobile device or a mobile application to initiate a chat session. In such an embodiment, chat messages are provided to the MCMS 101 over a mobile network via a mobile web application or simply via a mobile network (as opposed to SMS, MMS, or other similar short messaging format).
The discussions above in association with
In the specific embodiment shown in
Likewise, according to the specific embodiment shown in
As will be understood by one skilled in the art, the architecture as well as the specific modules and databases in
Starting at step 301, an MCP 140 verifies whether or not the MCMS 101 has received from a mobile carrier a chat message generated by a mobile device user. If the MCP 140 determines that no chat message has been received, the MCP 140 continues checking for received messages. If the MCP 140 determines a chat message has been received, however, the process 300 continues to step 302. At step 302, the MCP 140 assigns certain unique identifying information to the received chat message. According to one embodiment and as shown in
Next, at optional step 303 and according to certain embodiments, an MCP 140 processes and reassembles the received message if the message is longer than a predetermined number of characters. Certain messaging services limit the length of transmittable messages to a predetermined number of characters wherein a character includes a letter, number, punctuation mark, or blank space. For example, SMS messages are limited to 160 characters. According to one embodiment, if a mobile device user's chat message exceeds the predetermined character limit as set by the messaging service, and said chat message is subsequently subdivided into multiple messages to comply with said character limits, the MCP 140 will reassemble the multiple messages into a single chat message as intended by the mobile device user.
Moving to step 304, according to one embodiment, an MCP 140 extracts from the received chat message the phone number of the mobile device from which the received chat message originated. Once the MCP 140 extracts the phone number associated with the received message, the MCP 140 typically verifies whether or not said extracted phone number is associated with an active chat, as shown in step 305. According to one embodiment and as used herein, an “active chat” is characterized as an ongoing chat session between a mobile device user and a chat agent subsequent to an MCP 140 performing a Chat Initiation Process 400, as will be described in more detail in relation to
Still referring to
Upon associating a chat session ID to the received chat message, the MCP 140 typically verifies whether or not the received chat message contains a command corresponding to a specific action, as shown at step 307. According to one embodiment, a command for a specific action may comprise a predefined word, phrase, or other string of characters associated with a specific action to be carried out by the MCMS 101. For example, a received chat message could consist of the word “STOP”, which according to one embodiment would indicate that the mobile device user no longer wished to carry on a chat session and would trigger the MCMS 101 to immediately terminate said chat session. As will be understood by one skilled in the art, this is merely one example of a potential command for a specific action, and any number of such commands can be imagined. Should the MCP 140 determine at step 307 that a chat message does contain a command for a specific action, the MCP 140 generally initiates the Command Identification and Execution Process 800, as will be discussed further in relation to
If the MCP 140 determines that a chat message does not contain a command for a specific action, according to one embodiment, the MCP 140 filters the received chat message for obscene content as shown in optional step 308. Although not shown in
At step 309, the MCP 140 typically transmits the received chat message to an MMP 160 for further processing, and the Message Receipt and Intake Process 300 ends. Although not shown in
Generally, once the MCP 140 extracts the message content from the chat message, the MCP 140 compares the extracted content to a predefined list of identifying terms stored in an MCP Database 142, as shown at optional step 402. Referring back to the present illustrative and non-limiting example, the MCP 140 extracts “television” from the received message and compares the term to a predefined list of terms corresponding to various chat agent areas of knowledge or skill.
Moving to optional step 403, the MCP 140 determines whether a match exists between the extracted content of the received message and the predefined list of identifiers in the MCP Database 142. According to one aspect, and referring again to the present example, if no match exists, i.e., “television” does not correspond to the predefined list of identifiers, the Chat Initiation Process 400 proceeds to step 404 and transmits to the mobile device user (via the respective carrier network 120) an error message, a message requesting further information, a message containing other options from which the user can select, or other such messages as will occur to one of ordinary skill in the art. According to one aspect, the MCMS 101 may transmit a message indicating that the user's request is not understood or that the system does not recognize such a request. According to another aspect, the MCMS 101 may transmit a message requesting that the user select from a list of knowledge or skill options (of the chat agent or representative). In the present example, such a list may include options such as appliances, electronics, software, or various others as will be understood by one skilled in the art. After transmitting such a message according to step 404, the Chat Initiation Process 400 ends.
If, however, a match does exist between the extracted chat message content and the predefined list of identifiers in the MCP Database 142, the Chat Initiation Process 400 proceeds to step 405, and the MCP 140 transmits the message to the MPP 160 requesting a chat session with a chat agent and including an indication of the knowledge or skill required by the mobile device user. In the present example, if a match exists, i.e., “television” corresponds to an identifier in the predetermined list and indicates a particular area of chat agent knowledge or skill, the MCP 140 transmits a message to the MMP 160 requesting a chat session and indicating the mobile device user intends for the chat session to concern televisions. According to one aspect not shown in
According to certain aspects, once the MCP 140 transmits a message according to step 405, the MCMS 101 may, as shown in step 406, determine whether or not a chat agent who possesses the requisite knowledge or skill is currently present, i.e., is currently accessing a chat console on an electronic computing device in order to conduct chat sessions. If the MCMS 101 determines that a chat agent with the requisite knowledge or skill is not present, according to one aspect, the MCMS 101 generally transmits a message to the mobile device user indicating that chat agents with the requested knowledge or skill are unavailable, as shown in step 407. Referring again to the present example, the MCMS 101 may transmit a message to the mobile device user such as, “None of our television experts are currently available.” According to certain additional aspects, subsequent to transmitting an unavailable message as described in relation to step 407, the MCMS 101 may further transmit to a mobile device user a message including additional processing options, as shown in step 408. In the present example, such a message may inquire, “Would you like to chat with one of the agents in another department?”. As will be understood, chat messages including additional processing options can take many forms and present many different options to a mobile device user.
Still referring to
According to one aspect and per step 411, once an MMP 160 receives a message requesting a chat session from an MCP 140, a chat session is initiated. According to one aspect and as illustrated in
Typically, after initiating a chat session in the MMP 160, the system establishes the chat session with the mobile device user and transmits a corresponding confirmation message to said user, according to step 412. Additionally, the system establishes a chat session with the specified chat agent and likewise sends a corresponding confirmation message to the chat agent, according to step 413. Though
Generally, once the system establishes the chat session with the mobile device user 110 and the chat agent, the system determines whether a follow-up message has been received from either the mobile device user or the chat agent, according to step 414. According to one aspect, after waiting a pre-specified amount of time and determining that no follow-up message has been received from either party, the Chat Initiation Process 400 ends. If, however, the system receives a follow-up chat message from the mobile device user prior to the expiration of the waiting period, according to one aspect the system initiates the Message Receipt and Intake Process 300, as discussed in relation to
After receiving a message from a chat agent, the MMP 160 typically extracts the session ID from the received chat message, according to step 502. As discussed previously, a session ID generally is a unique identifier of a chat session between a mobile device user and a chat agent. According to one embodiment, once the MMP 160 extracts the session ID from the chat message, the session ID is used to retrieve the phone number of the intended recipient (mobile device user) as associated to the extracted session ID from an MMP Database 162, according to step 503. After retrieving the phone number of the intended recipient, according to step 504, the MMP typically associates the message received from the chat agent to the phone number of the intended recipient and logs the association of the message and phone number in the MMP Database 162.
Next, the MMP 160 forwards the message received from the chat agent to the MCP 140 for additional processing prior to forwarding the message to the intended recipient, as per step 505. According to one aspect not shown in
Upon determining that a message from a chat agent has been received from an MMP 160, the MCP 140 typically extracts the phone number associated to the received message, per step 602. Generally, mobile providers purchase large blocks of phone numbers, typically in blocks of 1,000 or 10,000, which have been assigned a specific area code and prefix combination. A registrar then declares the purchase in a database release, and as such, telephone numbers can typically be associated to a particular carrier based on the combination of the area code and prefix. Therefore, once the MCP 140 extracts the phone number, according to one aspect, it then uses the phone number to identify the mobile carrier of the intended recipient (mobile device user), according to step 603. According to one aspect not illustrated in
Once the system identifies the mobile device user's mobile carrier based on the extracted phone number, the system typically proceeds to the Message Routing Process 700 as shown in relation to
The Message Routing Process 700, as illustrated exemplarily in
After transmitting a chat message to a particular carrier-specific queue, the system typically identifies an optimized carrier-specific route within a particular carrier-specific queue based on pre-determined optimizing criteria, per step 702. According to one aspect, optimizing criteria can consider network conditions such as the current amount of traffic in a particular route, route availability, load balancing, and various other factors as will occur to one of ordinary skill in the art. Further, according to one aspect and though not shown in
Once the system identifies an optimized carrier-specific route, the system typically routes the chat message through said route to the mobile device user's carrier network, as per step 703. Once the system routes the chat message to the mobile device user's carrier network, the system generally receives status information from the carrier, as per step 704. According to one aspect, such status information may include a message delivery confirmation, a message indicating the mobile device user's mobile device was inoperative when delivery of the chat message was attempted, or various other status messages as will occur to a person having ordinary skill in the art. As will be understood, steps 703 and 704 are not necessarily completed in the order shown and may occur concurrently and continuously. Generally, upon receiving a status message from the mobile device user's carrier network, the Message Routing Process typically ends, as shown in
Now referring to
Continuing with
Furthermore, as will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art, data tables shown herein, such as session table 901 and message table 902, are presented for illustrative purposes only, and embodiments of the present system are not limited to data, information, and fields in the specific data tables shown. Additionally, the MCMS 101, in alternate embodiments can comprise various other data tables (and databases), as will occur to one skilled in the art.
Similarly,
As shown in
According to another aspect as also shown in
According to one embodiment and as also displayed in
As will be understood, the exemplary screenshots in connection with
Accordingly, it will be understood that various embodiments of the present system described herein are generally implemented as a special purpose or general-purpose computer including various computer hardware as discussed in greater detail below. Embodiments within the scope of the present invention also include computer-readable media for carrying or having computer-executable instructions or data structures stored thereon. Such computer-readable media can be any available media which can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer, or downloadable through communication networks. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable media can comprise physical storage media such as RAM, ROM, flash memory, EEPROM, CD-ROM, DVD, or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, any type of removable non-volatile memories such as secure digital (SD), flash memory, memory stick etc., or any other medium which can be used to carry or store computer program code in the form of computer-executable instructions or data structures and which can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer, or a mobile device.
When information is transferred or provided over a network or another communications connection (either hardwired, wireless, or a combination of hardwired or wireless) to a computer, the computer properly views the connection as a computer-readable medium. Thus, any such a connection is properly termed and considered a computer-readable medium. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media. Computer-executable instructions comprise, for example, instructions and data which cause a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or special purpose processing device such as a mobile device processor to perform one specific function or a group of functions.
Those skilled in the art will understand the features and aspects of a suitable computing environment in which aspects of the invention may be implemented. Although not required, the inventions are described in the general context of computer-executable instructions, such as program modules or engines, as described earlier, being executed by computers in networked environments. Such program modules are often reflected and illustrated by flow charts, sequence diagrams, exemplary screen displays, and other techniques used by those skilled in the art to communicate how to make and use such computer program modules. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types, within the computer. Computer-executable instructions, associated data structures, and program modules represent examples of the program code for executing steps of the methods disclosed herein. The particular sequence of such executable instructions or associated data structures represent examples of corresponding acts for implementing the functions described in such steps.
Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that the invention may be practiced in network computing environments with many types of computer system configurations, including personal computers, hand-held devices, multi-processor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, networked PCs, minicomputers, mainframe computers, and the like. The invention is practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by local and remote processing devices that are linked (either by hardwired links, wireless links, or by a combination of hardwired or wireless links) through a communications network. In a distributed computing environment, program modules may be located in both local and remote memory storage devices.
An exemplary system for implementing the inventions, which is not illustrated, includes a general purpose computing device in the form of a conventional computer, including a processing unit, a system memory, and a system bus that couples various system components including the system memory to the processing unit. The computer will typically include one or more magnetic hard disk drives (also called “data stores” or “data storage” or other names) for reading from and writing to. The drives and their associated computer-readable media provide nonvolatile storage of computer-executable instructions, data structures, program modules, and other data for the computer. Although the exemplary environment described herein employs a magnetic hard disk, a removable magnetic disk, removable optical disks, other types of computer readable media for storing data can be used, including magnetic cassettes, flash memory cards, digital video disks (DVDs), Bernoulli cartridges, RAMs, ROMs, and the like.
Computer program code that implements most of the functionality described herein typically comprises one or more program modules may be stored on the hard disk or other storage medium. This program code, as is known to those skilled in the art, usually includes an operating system, one or more application programs, other program modules, and program data. A user may enter commands and information into the computer through keyboard, pointing device, a script containing computer program code written in a scripting language or other input devices (not shown), such as a microphone, etc. These and other input devices are often connected to the processing unit through known electrical, optical, or wireless connections.
The main computer that effects many aspects of the inventions will typically operate in a networked environment using logical connections to one or more remote computers or data sources, which are described further below. Remote computers may be another personal computer, a server, a router, a network PC, a peer device or other common network node, and typically include many or all of the elements described above relative to the main computer system in which the inventions are embodied. The logical connections between computers include a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), and wireless LANs (WLAN) that are presented here by way of example and not limitation. Such networking environments are commonplace in office-wide or enterprise-wide computer networks, intranets and the Internet.
When used in a LAN or WLAN networking environment, the main computer system implementing aspects of the invention is connected to the local network through a network interface or adapter. When used in a WAN or WLAN networking environment, the computer may include a modem, a wireless link, or other means for establishing communications over the wide area network, such as the Internet. In a networked environment, program modules depicted relative to the computer, or portions thereof, may be stored in a remote memory storage device. It will be appreciated that the network connections described or shown are exemplary and other means of establishing communications over wide area networks or the Internet may be used.
In view of the foregoing detailed description of preferred embodiments of the present invention, it readily will be understood by those persons skilled in the art that the present invention is susceptible to broad utility and application. While various aspects have been described in the context of a preferred embodiment, additional aspects, features, and methodologies of the present invention will be readily discernable from the description herein, by those of ordinary skill in the art. Many embodiments and adaptations of the present invention other than those herein described, as well as many variations, modifications, and equivalent arrangements and methodologies, will be apparent from or reasonably suggested by the present invention and the foregoing description thereof, without departing from the substance or scope of the present invention. Furthermore, any sequence(s) and/or temporal order of steps of various processes described and claimed herein are those considered to be the best mode contemplated for carrying out the present invention. It should also be understood that, although steps of various processes may be shown and described as being in a preferred sequence or temporal order, the steps of any such processes are not limited to being carried out in any particular sequence or order, absent a specific indication of such to achieve a particular intended result. In most cases, the steps of such processes may be carried out in a variety of different sequences and orders, while still falling within the scope of the present inventions. In addition, some steps may be carried out simultaneously.
Downes, Scott, Griswold, Paul E., Raccuglia, Jennifer D., Scholl, Harvey M.
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May 18 2012 | Air2Web, Inc. | (assignment on the face of the patent) | / | |||
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Oct 08 2012 | SCHOLL, HARVEY M | AIR2WEB, INC | ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS | 029319 | /0929 | |
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